Sex attacks, criminal damage and assaults are among the offences carried out by primary school age children across the North East, figures have revealed.

Home Office figures have revealed 167 crimes committed by under-10s in the Northumbria and Durham Police areas - with a shocking five cases of sexual assault.

The age of the youngsters mean police were unable to bring charges as the age of criminal responsibility in England is 10-years-old, meaning under-10s have to be released without charge.

There were 114 offences relating to children under 10 in the Northumbria Police area, including five cases of sexual assault, while figures for Durham Police showed 53 offences carried out by primary school aged children.

The most common crime committed by under 10s in the region was criminal damage to vehicles, with 25 cases across Northumbria and Durham force areas.

Young children were suspected of 17 assaults causing injury and 21 assaults without injuries in the two force areas between October 2014 and September 2015.

Police across England and Wales found a total of at least 4,751 crimes where the suspect was nine-years-old or under in the past year.

But John Egan, director of children services at charity Action for Children, said that young children can be particularly vulnerable to organised crime.

He said: “No child is born a criminal and children and young people who are involved in serious or organised crime are incredibly vulnerable, it’s essential that we understand their position as they’re likely to have been influenced by family members or peers.

“Action for Children works closely with a range of agencies across social care and criminal justice across the country to understand the triggers and warning signs. Once we know who they are, we can provide support to help these children to choose a different path.

“By stopping the flow of new recruits to organised crime we can stop children from ruining their lives and the lives of those around them.”

The age of criminal responsibility in England is 10-years-old and any child under 10 is not considered to be fully aware of right and wrong and the consequences of their actions - Children aged 17 and under are classed as juveniles in the eyes of English law.

New figures from the Ministry of Justice show that one in five juveniles convicted in Newcastle last year went on to reoffend again within three months

In Sunderland 18.8% of young offenders ran into further trouble committing on average another two crimes each, while in County Durham 16.8% of convicted youngsters found themselves on the wrong side of the law again.

The Youth Justice Board said there has been an encouraging drop in the total number of young people convicted, though reoffending is still a concern.

Lin Hinnigan

Lin Hinnigan, the YJB’s chief executive said: “Reducing reoffending remains a priority for us. We are drilling down into the data to examine how the frequency and seriousness of offending has changed and we continue to develop and share effective practice in addressing reoffending behaviour.”